Considering Elite NE Boarding Schools for Son (Taft, Choate, Hotchkiss, Deerfield, etc.) Any advice?

[Anonymous]

The structure at most boarding schools is great!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:As always, this board is very unhelpful when it comes to boarding schools. There is a very good, moderated boarding school board at college confidential that has been very helpful.

Many are bitter they can’t afford the tuition and feel threatened by boarding school seniors taking their public and private day school children’s college slots.

No. We just truly cannot believe that any parent would sacrifice these four years with their own child.

I think this site has a very hard time understanding that some families have very different needs, priorities, and circumstances than their own.

Exactly. Does that poster realize how many parents are alcoholics, mentally ill, emotionally abusive, or have other debilitating issues? Tens of millions. Many grandparents pay the tuition so that their grandchildren can escape hellish households.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:As always, this board is very unhelpful when it comes to boarding schools. There is a very good, moderated boarding school board at college confidential that has been very helpful.

Many are bitter they can’t afford the tuition and feel threatened by boarding school seniors taking their public and private day school children’s college slots.

No. We just truly cannot believe that any parent would sacrifice these four years with their own child.

I think this site has a very hard time understanding that some families have very different needs, priorities, and circumstances than their own.

Exactly. Does that poster realize how many parents are alcoholics, mentally ill, emotionally abusive, or have other debilitating issues? Tens of millions. Many grandparents pay the tuition so that their grandchildren can escape hellish households.

Sure, but I don't think that's the circumstance for most kids considering Deerfield, Choate, or Taft. Most families that send their kids there are doing it for intensified rigor or that sports programs. For example, it's not easy to find a high-powered hockey program in the DMV. There are plenty of them in boarding schools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:As always, this board is very unhelpful when it comes to boarding schools. There is a very good, moderated boarding school board at college confidential that has been very helpful.

Many are bitter they can’t afford the tuition and feel threatened by boarding school seniors taking their public and private day school children’s college slots.

No. We just truly cannot believe that any parent would sacrifice these four years with their own child.

I think this site has a very hard time understanding that some families have very different needs, priorities, and circumstances than their own.

Exactly. Does that poster realize how many parents are alcoholics, mentally ill, emotionally abusive, or have other debilitating issues? Tens of millions. Many grandparents pay the tuition so that their grandchildren can escape hellish households.

Sure, but I don't think that's the circumstance for most kids considering Deerfield, Choate, or Taft. Most families that send their kids there are doing it for intensified rigor or that sports programs. For example, it's not easy to find a high-powered hockey program in the DMV. There are plenty of them in boarding schools.

Whether it’s most kids or not isn’t the point. There are numerous posters here who assume it is tragic and neglectful whenever a kid boards. It’s not. It’s often the best decision ever made for or by them.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The competition is more intense at these schools, and I think a lot of DC families don't understand this. These schools draw from top students across the world.

The top kids of these schools are entering freshman year familiar with calculus, physics, biology, and chemistry. They’ve learned to read and write at very sophisticated levels. Many of them hail from places with incredibly aggressive curriculums such as China, South Korea, Singapore, Hong Kong, etc. Even the rich white kids often transferred from the most rigorous NYC day schools such as Trinity, Spence, Horace Mann, or Collegiate.

If your kid is the traditional "advanced" DMV kid (which means he took Geometry in 8th grade) then he will likely settle into the median at one of these schools and end up at a college like NYU or Northeastern.

If you're worried about college matriculation results, then these schools are likely to hurt you if your kid doesn't graduate in the top decile. Competition among the top students in elite boarding schools is cutthroat. If your kid is ok with being in the median, then they'll likely be just fine.

If you want your kid to graduate as a tippy-top student or cum laude, make sure he's already writing at an 11th grade level when he enters. Make sure he has a very solid foundation in Algebra II, Pre-Calc, and a few calculus concepts.

These schools move at a rapid pace and there's an inherent expectation that they have mastered prerequisite material. There's very little "review" done in the classroom, and teachers aren't shy about giving highly conceptual "story" problems in the math and science courses.

+1 A good portion of the freshman class will be a ‘reclass’’. You have kids turning 16 their freshman year and already in advanced calculus as a freshman. Our super smart DMV kid struggled and then did just fine at a HADES school. The international kids are coming in with serious advanced math and science. But, it was really a great place for our kid and they landed in a T10 school

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It is laughable that you think your connections can get him in. I would love to see the surprise on your face when decisions come out.

I'm OP. We have family members on the board of several of these schools and he's also a recruited athlete with coaches' interest at several of them.

If you have all these connections, why don’t you ask them instead of us?

I thought the same thing. The original question is something a person would ask who didn’t have such access or knowledge of the boarding school world. The answer is yes. Yes it helps with colleges. But if your kid will be a recruited athlete then it probably would not help. Maybe a troll post. Too many weird questions for someone who is so ‘well connected’. lol.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It is laughable that you think your connections can get him in. I would love to see the surprise on your face when decisions come out.

I'm OP. We have family members on the board of several of these schools and he's also a recruited athlete with coaches' interest at several of them.

If you have all these connections, why don’t you ask them instead of us?

I thought the same thing. The original question is something a person would ask who didn’t have such access or knowledge of the boarding school world. The answer is yes. Yes it helps with colleges. But if your kid will be a recruited athlete then it probably would not help. Maybe a troll post. Too many weird questions for someone who is so ‘well connected’. lol.

It does not help, at all. Being top ten percent at a MoCo public or top quarter at a decent DC private is a much stronger position than being a median student at one of these boarding schools. It is far more difficult to be median at these boarding schools than a rock star in DC.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The competition is more intense at these schools, and I think a lot of DC families don't understand this. These schools draw from top students across the world.

The top kids of these schools are entering freshman year familiar with calculus, physics, biology, and chemistry. They’ve learned to read and write at very sophisticated levels. Many of them hail from places with incredibly aggressive curriculums such as China, South Korea, Singapore, Hong Kong, etc. Even the rich white kids often transferred from the most rigorous NYC day schools such as Trinity, Spence, Horace Mann, or Collegiate.

If your kid is the traditional "advanced" DMV kid (which means he took Geometry in 8th grade) then he will likely settle into the median at one of these schools and end up at a college like NYU or Northeastern.

If you're worried about college matriculation results, then these schools are likely to hurt you if your kid doesn't graduate in the top decile. Competition among the top students in elite boarding schools is cutthroat. If your kid is ok with being in the median, then they'll likely be just fine.

If you want your kid to graduate as a tippy-top student or cum laude, make sure he's already writing at an 11th grade level when he enters. Make sure he has a very solid foundation in Algebra II, Pre-Calc, and a few calculus concepts.

These schools move at a rapid pace and there's an inherent expectation that they have mastered prerequisite material. There's very little "review" done in the classroom, and teachers aren't shy about giving highly conceptual "story" problems in the math and science courses.

+1 A good portion of the freshman class will be a ‘reclass’’. You have kids turning 16 their freshman year and already in advanced calculus as a freshman. Our super smart DMV kid struggled and then did just fine at a HADES school. The international kids are coming in with serious advanced math and science. But, it was really a great place for our kid and they landed in a T10 school

Also the level of wealth. You are being compared to your classmates by Ivies and Nescacs when applying to college. Johnny Median whose dad gave a building will get in while you may be a stronger student. These types are way more common at HADES schools than the DMV. NYC has more of these development office admits for colleges than boarding schools at this point. The education at boarding schools is extremely rigorous, but over half of their Ivy and T20 admits are recruited athletes, legacies, and URMs

[Anonymous]

These boarding academies are just a whole different beast than day schools.

Many students are reclassifying as 15-16 year old freshmen. Many students hail from elite NYC day schools such as Trinity, Dalton, Spence, etc. and have a very solid academic foundation in the humanities.

Many international students are absolute rockstars in advanced STEM and easily get A's in the math/science classes. Tons of these students are entering with experience in calc, physics, biology, and chemistry, meaning they can sail through an ostensibly challenging curriculum.

The level of competition at these top 10 boarding schools is just so much more intense than a DC day school. If your kid is just the typical suburban overachiever, expect them to just graduate within the median and you'll be happy.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:These boarding academies are just a whole different beast than day schools.

Many students are reclassifying as 15-16 year old freshmen. Many students hail from elite NYC day schools such as Trinity, Dalton, Spence, etc. and have a very solid academic foundation in the humanities.

Many international students are absolute rockstars in advanced STEM and easily get A's in the math/science classes. Tons of these students are entering with experience in calc, physics, biology, and chemistry, meaning they can sail through an ostensibly challenging curriculum.

The level of competition at these top 10 boarding schools is just so much more intense than a DC day school. If your kid is just the typical suburban overachiever, expect them to just graduate within the median and you'll be happy.

Crediting. That DC overachiever may thrive being around extreme outliers and brilliant peers. If his or her goal is to max out college admissions, they are so much better off in day school or public school. Boarding school eats those types alive.

[Anonymous]

Your kid might academically flourish at a less competitive boarding school. I know of a family that picked Woodberry Forest over a HADES-type school because they wanted a less intense workload and easier competition. The kid graduated with a >4.0 unweighted GPA and got into multiple T20 colleges without much problem.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Your kid might academically flourish at a less competitive boarding school. I know of a family that picked Woodberry Forest over a HADES-type school because they wanted a less intense workload and easier competition. The kid graduated with a >4.0 unweighted GPA and got into multiple T20 colleges without much problem.

This is a good example of what to do to get into a T20. This child may or may not have been top quarter at Andover. Betting odds say he wouldn’t have been, competition is that severe. A median student at Andover isn’t doing that well college wise.

[Anonymous]

Competition is fierce at the super-elite, large boarding schools like Andover & Exeter. In fact, Andover has long had a serious problem regarding suicide/attempted suicides among its students. But, that does not extend to all of the other T-10 boarding schools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Your kid might academically flourish at a less competitive boarding school. I know of a family that picked Woodberry Forest over a HADES-type school because they wanted a less intense workload and easier competition. The kid graduated with a >4.0 unweighted GPA and got into multiple T20 colleges without much problem.

This is a good example of what to do to get into a T20. This child may or may not have been top quarter at Andover. Betting odds say he wouldn’t have been, competition is that severe. A median student at Andover isn’t doing that well college wise.

Not sure that this is accurate, but it depends upon how one defines "doing well college wise".

[Anonymous]

Andover Class of 2024: 100 of 324 students matriculated at one of the 8 Ivy League Schools, MIT, Stanford, U Chicago, Northwestern, Amherst, Williams, or Pomona. (Zero (0) to Swarthmore & none to CalTech.)